Connector for structural members



June 4, 1963 E. J. FIEKERS ETAL CONNECTOR FOR STRUCTURAL MEMBERS Filed Dec. 14, 1959 m m M m M M a 3 m K A mww& :IK J.A.H. EAE v. & B 8 cu a M United States Patent 3,091,822 CONNECTOR FOR STRUCTURAL MEMBERS Edmund J. Fiekers, Fremont, and Albert A. Klose and Elmer H. Schramm, Dayton, Ohio, assignors to Duratile of Ohio, Inc., Fremont, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Filed Dec. 14, 1959, Ser. No. 859,469 1 (Ilaim. (til. 20-94) This invention relates to a connector for structural members and more particularly to a wind brace for connecting a truss member to a structural plate. At present, tmss members are commonly fastened to structural plates in house construction by toenails which, at best, provides a relatively weak connection. While metal fasteners are known, they are of unduly complex shape, rendering their manufacture relatively expensive, and also require the use of a large number of nails. These devices are commonly used in the erection of partially prefabricated houses and the cost to furnish and drive a large number of nails is a decided factor in the cost of erecting the house.

The present invention is intended primarily to provide a much stronger connection, capable of being furnished and installed at a lower price. The connector is made of a single strip of metal with four simple bends therein, and also requires less labor for its installation than presently known devices of a similar nature.

It is, therefore, a principal object of the invention to provide an improved connector for Wooden structural members and particularly for use as a Wind brace having the advantages set forth above.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof, reference being made to the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective of a connector according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the connector of FIG. 1 connecting a roof truss to a structural plate; and

FIG. 3 is a top view on a somewhat reduced scale, of the connector, truss, and plate shown in FIG. 2.

Referring to the drawings and more particularly to FIG. 1, a connector or wind brace according to the invenvention is indicated at 16 and includes a central, cross web 12, first and second vertical legs 14 and 16 perpendicular to the web 12 and extending in a common direction from the ends thereof and diverging leg extensions 18 and 20. The leg extensions 18 and 20 are integrally connected to the legs 14 and 16 along bend lines 22 and 24 respectively and lie in a common plane which is perpendicular to the planes of the legs 14 and 16. The web 12 includes at least one nail hole 26 and the leg extensions preferably have five staggered nail holes 28. In some instances, the legs 14 and 16 will also have nail holes 30.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the connector is shown connecting an upper chord 32 of a truss 34 to a structural plate 36 comprising two 2 x 4s. The connector 10 is placed over the upper chord 32 with the leg extensions 18 and 20 parallel to vertical edges of the plate 36 and with lower portions of the legs 14 and 16 embracing an end portion of a lower chord 38. A nail is then driven through the web hole 26 to position the connector 10 on the chord 32 and, subsequently, nails are driven through the holes 28 to affix the leg extensions 18 and 20 to the plate 36. If desired, nails can also be driven through the holes 30 into the upper chord 32, although this is not usually necessary.

It will be noted that the bend lines 22 and 24 form angles with edges of the legs 14 and 16, which angles are equal to the slope of the roof, the angles being designated X in FIG. 2. Thus, for a 5/ 12 roof pitch, the angle X has a tangent of 5/ 12 for both the bend lines 22 and 24 and the pitch. In practice, the same connector 10 can be used for roofs of various pitches. Thus, to of all partially prefabricated houses have slopes of 2.5/12, 3/12, 4/12, or 5/12. By forming the bend line so that the tangent of the angle X formed thereby is 5/12, a connector 10 can be employed for roofs of shallower pitch. This is accomplished by first fastening the cross web 12 on the upper chord 32, in which case the lower ends of the leg extensions 18 and 20 are the only portions contacting the plate 36. However, when nails are driven through the upper hole 28 in each of the leg extensions, the extensions will be bent parallelly to and against the vertical edges of the plate 36 and will thus be substantially as effective as a connector 10 which is formed specifically for that particular pitch. Of course, the tangent of the angle X can equal a shallowing pitch, but a steep one enables the bend lines 22 and 24 to stop short of the lower edge of the upper chord 32. Otherwise, the lower portions of the legs 14 and 16 would interfere with the plate 36. For whatever pitch the connector 10 is formed, however, the leg extensions 18 and 20 will extend outwardly at substantial diverging angles which enables them to impart greater lateral stability to the upper chord 32.

The connector 10 according to the invention imparts much greater strength to the truss 34 than does the conventional method of toenailing such trusses to the plates, the point of failure being several times that of trusses aflixed by toe nailing. The connector 10 also provides greater strength than is imparted by other wind braces and requires from 2 to 11 nails compared to as many as 22 for at least one known wind brace.

It is to be understood that while with most construction the wind brace 10 is preferably placed on the inside of the plate 36, it may also be placed on the outside thereof in some instances.

By Way of further illustration and not limitation, a specific connector 10 according to the invention has been made of an 18 gauge steel strip 1 /8" wide by 18 /2" long. The strip was bent at right angles along lateral lines each 7 from the center of the strip to form the Web 12 and the legs 14 and 16, and it was also bent outwardly along lines defining angles having tangents of 5/12 starting at points on the short edges of the legs 14 and 16 1 /2 from the web 12, to form the leg extensions 18 and 20. Eleven ten-penny nails were driven through the holes 26 and 23 to aifix the connector to the upper chord and the plate.

Various modifications of the above described embodiment of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art and can be made without departing from the scope of the invention, if within the tenor and spirit of the appended claim.

We claim:

In combination with a chord of a pitched roof truss and a structural plate on which said chord is supported, said chord laying at an angle which determines the pitch of the roof, a wind brace connecting said chord to said structural plate, said wind brace being made of a single straight strip of metal and comprising a cross web lying on and parallel to an upper edge of said chord, a pair of parallel legs, the longitudinal edges of which are perpendicular to the plane of said web and extend from edges of said web in a common direction, a pair of leg extensions integrally connected to ends of said legs along diagonal bend lines, said leg extensions extending in diverging directions with at least substantial portions of said leg extensions lying in a common plane which forms an angle with the longitudinal edges of said legs equal to said chord angle, said diverging extensions extending symmetrically with respect to a vertical plane through the chord and ending at substantial distances away from said chord plane and said chord, a plurality of holes in:

each of said leg extensions, fasteners extending through at least some of said holes in each of said leg extensions and fastening said leg extensions to a side of said structural plate at a point spaced a substantial distance from said chord plane to provide substantial lateral support for said chord, and a hole in said Web to receive an additional fastener for fastening said Web to said chord.

UNITED STATES PATENTS Lane Nov. 13, 1894 Tuteur Feb. 28, 1905 Lanz Aug. 14, 1906 Seipp Aug. 21, 1906 Summerbell Oct. 4, 1921 McKee July 15, 1958 FOREIGN PATENTS Australia 1950 

